POLICIES 11.4 Crown minerals and pounamu
The Crown Minerals Act 1991 and the Resource Management Act 1991 control mining. Mining licences are not concessions under the Conservation Act 1987.
Access to Crown minerals on public conservation lands and waters requires an access arrangement, authorised by the Minister of Conservation.
The Ngāi Tahu (Pounamu Vesting) Act 1997 vested in Ngāi Tahu ownership of all pounamu occurring in its natural condition found in the takiwā of Ngāi Tahu Whānui and in adjacent parts of the territorial sea and its seabed and subsoil. Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu has issued a Pounamu Resource Management Plan that sets out its policies for the protection, collection and extraction of pounamu.
Section 8(2) of the Crown Minerals Act 1991 provides for the use of Crown-owned minerals that exist in a natural state by the Department, or any other occupiers of the land in which those minerals occur, for the purposes of reasonable domestic, road making or building purposes on that land. Removal of sand, shingle or other natural material from the bed of a lake or river and the foreshore is covered by sections 12 and 13 of the Resource Management Act 1991 and will require a resource consent from the relevant territorial authority. A concession under the relevant Act is also required.
POLICIES
11.4 Crown minerals and pounamu
11.4 (a) All applications for access arrangements to minerals on public conservation lands and waters will be considered under section 61(1A), where applicable, and section 61(2) of the Crown Minerals Act 1991.
11.4 (b) Access arrangements for the removal of pounamu from public conservation lands and waters within the takiwā of Ngāi Tahu will be considered only where the applicant has authorisation for collection from the kaitiaki rūnanga of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu.
11.4 (c) Conservation management strategies and plans will identify where sand, shingle or other natural mineral material can be removed from the bed of a lake or river or foreshore, consistent with the protection of natural resources and historical and cultural heritage values.
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